


Letters

by Straccia_Tella



Category: Tales of Zestiria
Genre: Angst because that's all I can write, M/M, Post-Canon, Post-Mikleo, Seraph Sorey, fluff at the end
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-29
Updated: 2016-04-29
Packaged: 2018-06-05 04:55:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,303
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6690505
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Straccia_Tella/pseuds/Straccia_Tella
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Mikleo leaves Sorey to help clean their home a bit and the Shepherd stumbles upon a box filled with letters. Like anyone with a good curiosity, he decided to read them.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Letters

Sorey was helping clear out their home, which wasn’t too hard since Mikleo didn’t accumulate a lot of furniture over the years. However, there were plenty of books archived onto large shelves, or just strewn across the floor while Sorey had been asleep, so… he was easily distracted if he was left alone for too long.  
“Sorey, could you put those books over on the shelf to the left?” Mikleo asked, brushing back his long curled hair from his neck with one hand. “Sorey?”  
The water seraph saw his friend, a book in his hands, lips twitched up thoughtfully, green eyes glued onto the pages and backed turned- basically he didn’t hear a word his friend had said. Give Sorey a book and he would forget that anything outside of those pages domain even existed. The seraph sighed; putting down the pile of books he held, walked over to Sorey and gently pulled on the boy’s thin ponytail. The tip had bright yellow highlights that almost looked white which contrasted nicely with his brown hair, and two orange feathers stuck out from where the band held his hair in place.  
He yelped in surprise as he fell backwards onto the floor, looking up innocently at Mikleo, with the book still grasped in his hands.  
“What??”  
Mikleo sighed, “I was asking if you could move the books over there onto those shelves. If we don’t get these off the floor, we’re bound to trip over them.”  
“How about after one more page?” Sorey tried to bargain and Mikleo promptly snatched the book out of the Shepherd’s hands and tucked it under his arm.  
“Now, or I’ll never let you finish it.”  
Sorey groaned and sat up; rubbing his head and watching Mikleo don his cloak over his black shirt.  
“I’m going off to talk to Lailah and I’ll be back soon, so the least you can do is put those books away.”  
“What’s it about?” Sorey asked curiously, his feather earrings bobbing as his head tilted to the right. “Is it something important?”  
“Just a few problems with the Hellions, don’t worry.” He smiled at Sorey before leaving. As the oak door closed, the teen was left alone to tend to the books.  
As the former Shepherd started to place the books away, he absently wondered about the things he couldn’t remember. His past was still clear to him, the moments he shared with Mikleo and their adventures. He could talk to the other seraphs a little about the old times, but everything afterwards became a blur. He had asked how long he’d been asleep, and the answer was usually a “few hundred years”. He wondered how many people he knew before his slumber were gone in that time.  
As he picked up another book from the ground, he was surprised to find it was actually quite light. This of course, called for further inspection. The cover was dark brown with a clasp going around it like a belt, now he realized it was actually a box. Upon opening the “book” was hollowed out on the inside and filled close to the brim with papers. He took out each one carefully and saw that it was enough to make a small novel. The bottom seemed like the best place to start as he sat down on the floor and crossed his legs with the box and papers set aside.  
These weren’t just pieces of paper as he soon found out, they were letters and in Mikleo’s handwriting no less. He couldn’t mistake those clean strokes of ink for anyone else. Excited, the Shepherd began to read the first line.

 _Sorey, I’m writing these letters even though I know you may never read them, but everyone suggested I write to help cope. I suppose it’s better than bottling it all in with no outlet… But besides this, I’ve also been writing a book on our adventures. It seems alright so far, I’ve barely scratched the surface of our journey and I asked everyone else for their opinions. I’m willing to admit it was a bad idea on my part._  
_While they were earnest in helping me, Lailah tried to turn most of my drafts into a pun book, Zaveid got close to turning the story into a cheesy romance, and Edna… I thought her nagging would never end. Alisha and Rose were more than willing to help me in their free time, but I decided that I’m going try to do this project on my own. It’ll be good for me to have something besides the book to keep me occupied for a while._  
_I’ll end today’s letter here before I continue to ramble. I don’t know when I’ll get to the next letter or if I’ll have enough time. Still, I’ll get back to you soon, Sorey._  
_-Mikleo_

After that first letter Sorey quickly put it down and shuffled through for another letter from the pile, not caring if he went in order. Although that wasn’t exactly a good idea, he wanted to read more, no matter what he grabbed or where he was. He needed to hear Mikleo’s thoughts. Whenever he attempted to bring up the time he was asleep, Mikleo gently pushes it aside, and says that Sorey being here was enough.

 _How long has it been, two years or three years, or maybe a bit more? In that time, I’ve been writing, editing and rereading. The book looks almost done. Just yesterday, I finished the chapter of the last night before the fight against Maotelus. This… was almost too painful for me to write, but I managed somehow. I’ve also been growing a bit as well, Edna claims I’m merely pushing my fantasies, but I swear I feel like I’ve gotten taller. If you were here, I wonder if you’d believe me._  
_Elysia’s been peaceful for quite some time. Although it feels lonelier than before, everyone is managing to get by. Even the kingdoms have become less confrontational since our fight against the dragon, but that doesn’t mean they’ve forgiven each other yet. Alisha’s working her hardest to find a way for these two kingdoms to coexist without it breaking out into war again. I truly wonder whether or not there will be a day when once humans stop fighting, Seraphs will be able to join in their harmony. I also wonder when we’ll be able to communicate with them like the days of yore, but will they accept us at all? Deity’s that used to never exist in their minds except in texts and natural phenomenon’s? You and Rose gave us hope that maybe that day would soon come… but perhaps it won’t be for a long time._  
_That’s… all I feel like talking about today. I’ll write to you again when I can._  
_-Mikleo_

 _Alisha married, did you know that? It was such a beautiful ceremony with so many flowers I’m pretty sure many thought they had accidentally traveled to the afterlife. I didn’t think royal weddings were this grand, not that I know much beyond the books we had, and there was so many people there as well. Even Edna was having a good time, she hardly complained! I know you would have loved it. The celebration continued on throughout the night, perhaps after years of discord between the two kingdoms, something like this was a desired respite. That night, the sky was so clear, there were even some shooting stars streaking the sky as if it was their gift to the newlyweds. I wonder, even as you sleep, can you see them somehow?_  
_Speaking of celebrations, Alisha helped publish my book months prior to her wedding. She did that for me and handled her own wedding plans with such elegance, I admit, she still amazes me to this very day. It was like an adrenaline rush to get my own book in my hands, she told me it had become very popular after its publication. “The Legend of the Shepherd Sorey”, she called it. Imagine that. I suppose after this book of your heroic deeds people will start to collaborate on making a museum dedicated to you. Now that, is something I can't wait to see._  
_-Mikleo_

 _Human life is too short. As I watch Rose and Alisha grow older… I remain the same. If I’m being honest now, then I’ll confess. A long time ago when we were children, I had always worried about that. I wondered how I would live if you were to vanish from the world, you were a human after all. It was natural for you to go through the cycles of aging until death claimed you. Seraphs hardly age, so I would have remained young forever, and you would have grown older. You wouldn’t be by my side forever, one day, as all humans would… you’d, have to leave alone. That’s an inevitable fate for any living thing, but I sometimes wondered why it had to be that way._  
A few blobs of ink appeared after those words like Mikleo was hesitating in what he wanted to put down next before he returned the quill to the paper.  
_Sorry, for all of the dark thoughts, I’ve been alone with myself for a while. The others are walking around Lastonbell, and I told them I wanted to rest at the inn. But I’ll get out soon, and I’ll see if there are any books worth purchasing. Speaking of books, I’ve been archiving so many things throughout these past years, I feel like I’d have to make my own library up in Elysia just to store them. Edna once muttered that our house was beginning to look like a hermit had decided to live there, I chose to ignore her words per usual. You’ll have a lot of history to catch up to when you wake up, but I’m sure you wouldn’t mind that._  
_-Mikleo_

Sorey pushed the letters he read aside, eyebrows knitting tightly on his forehead. None of these letters had dates on them, but maybe that’s what Mikleo wanted. Just a place for him to unwind and write down his thoughts freely without having to worry much about the time slowly but surely passing him by. Even though there was nothing to pinpoint exactly where things began, Sorey could make out a thing timeline and started to distantly recall people’s faces and the places Mikleo wrote about. However, he still needed to get a clearer picture. The Shepherd picked out another letter and continued to read.

 _Rose passed. We had chosen a new Shepherd long before that happened, he’s quite serious unlike a certain someone, but he has that same energy and purity as you. Rose herself helped choose him and was proud to have kept the legacy of the Shepherd going. He paid his respects for her down near Ladylake where she’s been buried; some of the old members of the Sparrow Feathers came as well. Time has changed their appearance, but I still managed to recognize them._  
_However, for us Seraph’s, the Shepherd’s Journey, is far from over. I don’t think I’ll be able to write to you for a while… I’ll try somehow Sorey, I promise._  
_-Mikleo_

“Rose…” Sorey reread that name in the letter repeatedly; a spirited girl with red hair and a large grin appeared in his mind along with another name, “Wilkus Wil”, “Rose is Rose”. He didn’t understand how or why, but learning about her passing… it hurt. He put the paper down and took in a few breaths before he reached for another letter.

 _My hair seems to be getting longer. I’ve been pushing it off my neck constantly and Lailah suggests I cut it if it bothers me. I don’t know why, but I decided to not cut it until I see you again… Well, maybe I won’t let it get **that** long. I can't have Edna, Lailah or Zaveid getting any creative ideas on what to do._ _I don’t know how long we’ve been traveling, but so many areas have changed. There are more roads and small towns popping up around the land where nothing used to be there at all. Our new Shepherd is always amazed when I talk about the past to them, and they start peppering me with more questions than I can handle. But they have their heart in the right place, so I don’t really mind. It's almost like raising a child, I suppose. Or in your case, handling one._  
_We stopped at Ladylake to rest and we went to see Alisha. She looks so much older now, but her benevolence hadn’t aged a day. She helped tie my hair up and talked about the past with me. She said she wished she could see you and Rose again, adding that it had been over sixty years since she met us… Her hands were wrinkled yet warm. She told me that she was happy to have seen me again after all this time. Alisha could still see me, but she wasn’t in her primes anymore and her health was declining steadily. She looked out the window where a gardener was trimming a rose bush with plentiful red blossoms._  
_“I had the gardeners plant those after Rose died,” She told me and giggled. “I wonder if she would have complained about me putting those flowers in the palace garden. Rose and Sorey… they were my first friends, as well as Lord Mikleo, of course.”_  
_“Yes, it’s been a long time. From all that happened, I’m glad that I’ve been able to meet you and call you a friend, Alisha.”_  
_Her eyes wavered, her face relaxed, it was like she had finally accepted something. “It’s only been two years since Rose had passed… at least she lived a long good life.”_  
_Before I could add anything more to the subject, she patted my shoulder and told me to go rest with the others. When I left her chambers, she was looking out to the garden again, the mid-afternoon sun shining on her like she was a precious stone. Looking back, I wished that I had stayed beside her for that one night._  
_Alisha had died the next morning apparently in her sleep, her face looked so peaceful. We stayed a bit longer in order to attend her funeral, even though no one could see us. After a while… From what I heard, the kingdom was in mourning for at least a week._  
_-Mikleo_

Alisha, “Melphis Amekia,” Sorey heard the name escape his lips after he had finished reading the letter; “Alisha the Smiling”. His heart hurt, but he couldn’t understand why, had Alisha and Rose been people he cared about? He desperately racked his mind for answers, for a memory, for another picture of the two women’s faces. The Shepherd rubbed his temple, feeling his eyes cross. The next letter was slanted slightly, and some of the words looked blurred, like someone had cried over them. There were splatters of ink and then one long stain at the top corner of the paper. Did the ink well spill over it?

_I’m writing this in the middle of the night with little light, so my writing may not look as clean as it usually does, but I don’t care. I’m scared, Sorey. I’m scared that you’ll never wake up- that I’ll l never get to see you again. I understand if this sounds childish, but I don’t know what to do. I’ve never stopped counting the years that I’ve been waiting for you. Just like those nightmares I have, those dreams where I feel like I’m losing you for every year that passes. When I wake up, the first thing I look for is you. Then I’m reminded you’re not here with me._

The next line was scribbled out roughly like Mikleo was beginning to go into a mad frenzy with his quill.

_I miss you. I miss you. I miss you. I miss you. I miss you. I miss you so much, Sorey. Please, hurry and come back. Please… Please…_

The sides of the paper were crumbled and Sorey could imagine the whole scenario. He could see Mikleo hastily scratching down his words and not caring if the tears coming down his cheeks stained the pages. He could see the quill moving until it almost tore into the paper, and then grabbing the paper angrily, gritting his teeth and sobbing quietly to himself. He wanted nothing more than to have been there for Mikleo somehow, to assure him and hold him. Letting him know that all would be well, that he had nothing to worry about. Still, there were some faint words left in the letter that Sorey tried to read. He could only guess Mikleo was running out of ink at the end of this.

_I’m sorry… I knew that night would be the last I’d see you in a long time, and I accepted it. I just… I didn’t know how much waiting could hurt, how long it would take. Please, forget about what I wrote earlier. It’s funny, I’m still writing you all these letters, and you can’t receive them now. But… the letters really help, sometimes I feel like I’m talking to you again._

The usual consistency of Mikleo’s letters stopped here. He didn’t sign his name like he usually would, instead, there were three words written down with a shaken hand.

_I miss you._

 

 

Sorey didn’t know how long he had been sitting there as he put the letter down. It felt like a few seconds, but maybe it was longer. He thought of all those years that he missed the people who he knew, the places he traveled and the things he saw. His green eyes looked up at the ceiling of his home, wondering about a past that was hard to recall. Taking a breath, he reached out for another letter.

 _I can’t believe it, my clothes got ruined when I went exploring today, and not only that, but my spares feel too small now. Is this what you went through when you were growing? I understand it’s supposed to be a somewhat “magical” time for humans… but I think it’s somewhat of an annoying phase. Now I need to make new clothes soon, or I’m going to have to walk around in nothing but a cloak. I know you’re teasing me a bit in your thoughts, stop it._  
_My head feels heavier now; I think my hair has grown at least five more inches down my back. Surprisingly, it’s a bit comforting, it’s like I’m lying in water when I go to sleep. Oh right, one day I woke up after what felt like a long nap and my voice felt… different. It was certainly a bit deeper than it was before, which did shock everyone a bit. I think I read in a book that “puberty” did play a role in this change in my body. I seem to recall a time when the same happened to you. Hmm, if I let this growing thing take its course… would I be taller than you were?_

There was a long thoughtful pause in the writing and Sorey could practically imagine the evil grin spreading across Mikelo’s pale lips as he thinks about himself growing.

 _Just you wait, when we see each other again, I won’t be as small as before. We’ll see who has to look up to the other when you wake up! Ha! Now you'll understand how I felt when you hit your growth spurt those many years ago!_  
_\- Mikleo_

Sorey couldn’t help but chuckle, Mikleo could be competitive when it was between the two of them. He had to admit, that was one of his endearing features.

 _I visited some new ruins today. It had lots of old scriptures written all across the walls and plenty of obelisks were scattered around. I also found some images that looked similar to what was in the Sheperd’s Journal, does this mean these ruins were a memorial of some kind? I promise you I’ll tell you all about each and every one I went to. In all honesty when I'm exploring by myself, sometimes it almost feels like you're in every ruin that I enter. Sorry if the letters are looking shorter than usual, I haven’t been getting time in to sit down and write like I used to. I carry a journal around and use it as a log book, but I guess it isn’t the same._  
\- Mikleo

Before he had the chance to read anymore, the door to their home opened and Mikleo walked in.  
“That took longer than I expected. Lailah and I talked to me about the Lord of the Land and stray Hellions roaming about. We’ll have to be careful when we go travelling. Did you at least get most of the books-?”  
Sorey turned, letter still in hand as Mikelo’s voice trailed off. The water seraph’s face was first remorseful when he saw the pile of books still littering the floor, but his eyes went wide when he saw the letter. He flushed red and practically flew at Sorey, tackling him into the floor. Sorey was reminded of times they used to play in the fields around Elysia as children, but the way they were thrashing now was more painful than playful.  
“W-Wait Mikleo, this is-!” Sorey tried to keep the letter out of Mikleo’s hands, but the seraph’s reach was longer and he almost caught the paper a couple of times.  
“How many of those did you read?!” Mikleo demanded, his violet eyes blazing with embarrassment. “Never mind, give me that letter!”  
“What are you going to do with it?”  
“ ** _Burn it along with the rest of them_**!”  
“ _No you won’t_!” Sorey groaned, feeling his friend’s wait slowly begin to push the air out of his lungs.  
“Sorey! _Give_! _It_! _To_! _Me_!”  
Mikleo was on top of Sorey, desperation filled his movements as he ordered his friend to return he letters. Sorey slipped his free hand down to Mikleo’s waist and began to tickle him. If there’s one thing about Mikleo he would always remember it would be that Mikleo was extremely sensitive (and ticklish) at the waist. The seraph jolted in surprise, giving Sorey enough time to move away, grab the box that held the other letters and snatched the rest that he had set aside, holding it tightly to his chest.  
The two huffed, trying to catch their breaths while looking at each other.  
The water seraph pushed back his long curled bangs, and placed a hand over his flushed face. Sorey looked down at the box before returning it to his friend.  
“You wrote all of these to me?”  
Mikleo silently nodded his head in resignation.  
“Then why didn’t you show me? Why hide it?”  
The seraph lifted his head up, but averted his eyes from Sorey’s. “… It was embarrassing. All I wrote were complaints and ruminations. I look back now and see how selfish I was acting.” He groaned as he hunched over. “I wish I could just toss them in the fire place right now.”  
“You really think so? I thought it was cute and touching,” Sorey said without missing a beat.  
Mikleo looked to the side and covered his mouth; Sorey knew this meant he was embarrassed. “You’re not helping.”  
“I’m actually happy you wrote these, really. I don’t remember a whole lot about the past, and I know it’s painful for you to bring it up sometimes. But knowing you did all of this to help me when I woke up again… I can’t put it in words.”  
Mikleo looked at Sorey, catching the innocent wide eyes and arms wrapped around the small box. “You’re hopeless,” he sighed, shaking his head.  
He barely caught Sorey’s movement as he jumped up and embraced Mikleo. The two would have fallen backwards had the seraph not steadied himself quickly.  
“Sorey?” Mikleo asked. Physical contact was something normal that they always did, but this surprised him. “What are you doing?”  
“Thank you for waiting, Mikleo.”  
Mikleo was quiet for a moment, but then he smiled, returning the gesture. It felt just like when they reunited in the ruins. The warmth of their bodies mingling together, the familiar feeling of Sorey being there, it was like Mikleo had been missing a part of himself for those long years, and now he’s finally whole again.  
“Maybe I should compose some poetry for each letter you wrote to me?” Sorey suggested. “I should make it up to you somehow, right?”  
Mikleo sharply inhaled, moved away slightly and put a gloved hand beneath Sorey’s chin so the younger man could face him. He ran his thumb gently over Sorey’s cheek, and slowly brought their foreheads together, they were close enough that they could almost see a reflection of themselves in the others’ eyes.  
“Look, I promise you I won’t burn any of those letters if you promise me in turn to not write me any poems.”  
“Huh, why not??” Sorey asked in outrage.  
“Do I have to remind you about the last time you tried to write about the Pendrago? You almost angered it!”  
“That was just a first attempt, I’ll get better!”  
“Sorey, If you dare try and fight me on this, I’ll throw you out of the house for the night!”  
They paused and stared at each other. There was silence between them, not an awkward one, but a comfortable and natural silence. Almost in unison, the two started giggling.  
Then it slowly turned into full blown laughing as they laughed at their little squabble. Their voices echoed around their small house and the letters lay around them like fallen snow.

**Author's Note:**

> Please, I just want these two to be happy. Also, when the ToZ anime comes out, I wouldn't mind seeing a Seraph Sorey at the end of it (hopefully).


End file.
